Serious vein to Owen's knee injury treatment

Leading footballers like Michael Owen who fly to the United States to be treated for serious knee injuries by the top surgeon Richard Steadman are putting themselves at risk of suffering the potentially fatal deep-vein thrombosis, a senior British sports doctor has claimed.

Steve Bollen, Bradford City's club doctor and founder of the British Orthopedic Sports Trauma Association, has claimed there are plenty of doctors in the UK who are capable of treating such injuries. But athletes are turning increasingly towards Steadman's Colorado clinic to receive treatment. "It's often the agents, rather than the players, who have the idea they can only be treated in the US," Bollen said.

Steadman has operated on many of Britain's leading sportsmen who have suffered knee injuries, including Alan Shearer and the England cricketer Simon Jones, and Owen is due at his clinic later this summer for surgery as the England striker seeks to recover from the knee injury that ended his World Cup. Bollen has told the latest issue of Hospital Doctor that he was preparing to treat one top British player when suddenly he was sent to the US to be treated by Steadman.

"It was very bad - the player's leg was filling with blood," he said. "Next thing, the agent had packed him off on an 11-hour flight to Colorado with his leg in a brace." And that despite the fact Bollen had recommended the player should not fly for at least four weeks.

Sky takes crash course

Perhaps bearing in mind the perform-ances of England's cricketers recently, Sky Sports is to introduce a new instant-replay innovation in its coverage of the first Lord's Test.

The Hi-Motion camera was originally developed to film crash-test dummies, giving a perspective not possible with standard camera technology. The camera records action at up to 1,000 frames per second, compared to 48 frames for a standard slow-motion camera and the technology was enhanced to high-definition at the beginning of the summer when Sky Sports became the first broadcaster to screen sport in HD. Originally developed by the motor industry, the film producer Guy Ritchie has employed them for high-profile movies.

"Hi-Motion is the best camera in all of worldwide sports broadcasting," said Sky Sports' executive producer for cricket Barney Francis. "The images it provides are incredible and having immediate access to the footage will enhance our cricket coverage even further. After being the first broadcaster to introduce the ultra slow-motion camera to global sports broadcasting, it's fantastic to be the first to introduce instantaneous replays, too."

Less popular with traditionalists, though, Sky will add seven new Willow & Stumpy packages, cartoon characters designed to explain the sport to a younger audience.

Almost getting the point

Jolanda Ceplak, winner of the Olympic 800m bronze behind Kelly Holmes in Athens, narrowly avoided being impaled by a javelin at a meeting in Patras, Greece, on Tuesday. The 29-year-old Slovenian, who holds the world indoor record, luckily received just minor injuries when the projectile struck her elbow, but was badly shaken by the incident.

"I was warming up on the grass when I felt something hit me very hard on the elbow, and I fell to the ground from the pain," said Ceplak. "Then I saw the javelin lying there next to me, and I just froze." Ceplak said the competitors in the men's javelin throw were warming up at the same time, and that the strong winds in the stadium caused the spear to fly in her direction. "I saw the thrower and he, too, was very shaken, probably more than I was." She eventually recovered to finish second in the race.

Just up Rudman's street

The Olympic success of the bob skeleton silver medallist Shelley Rudman, could be marked with a street name if Pewsey Parish Council gets its way. It has been approached by Bloor Homes, which is redeveloping the site of the Wiltshire village's former hospital, and asked for suggestions for names of five streets. Council chairman Alex Carder had no hesitation. "Well, it's got to be Shelley Rudman Road." There is already a plaque on the entrance signs to the village saying "The home of Shelley Rudman".